1. Introduction

This bibliography grew out of the recognition that research on the history of international exhibitions and world's fairs is burgeoning and that sources on the topic have proliferated enormously in recent years. As a consequence, the field has grown tremendously and now involves disciplines as diverse as History, Cultural Geography, Urban Studies, Art History and the History of Architecture, among others. This development, however, has made it increasingly difficult to find appropriate research sources. It is hoped that this bibliography will aid in that process.

At present, the bibliography only includes secondary sources that are analytical rather than merely descriptive although there are some sources that are not scholarly in nature. In general, however, primary sources, contemporaneous works, firsthand accounts and popular materials have been excluded. We have tried to be comprehensive yet selective. Still, the bibliography includes approximately 1,200 items and covers more than one hundred different fairs held in more than twenty different countries, from Jamaica to Japan. For the Great Exhibition of 1851 alone there are 80 items, and for the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, more than 150 entries.

The bibliography is strongest on exhibitions and fairs held in North America and Western Europe although it does include fairs held in other parts of the world. The list starts with research aids and general works first, followed by each country in alphabetical order and then the fairs chronologically by date. For the most part, only international fairs and expositions whose goals surpassed solely commercial concerns and involved more than one country have been included. References for fairs before 1851 and after 1951 are sporadic at best and are not intended to be complete.

For a searchable database of items for fairs between 1851 and 1903, housed at California State University, Fresno, please see: http://www.lib.csufresno.edu/SubiectResources/SpecialCollections/WorIdFairs/DatabaseWelcome.html. These items are part of the Donald G. Larson Collection on International Expositions and Fairs, 1851-1940, and are available for anyone to research at the Special Collections Library at California State University, Fresno.

One day, this bibliography may also be fully searchable as a database. For now, we hope it serves as a useful list. To our knowledge, this is the most current and complete bibliography on the topic that exists. It is regularly updated and added to, in order to keep it as current as possible. Comments, corrections and pertinent additions to the bibliography are always very welcome, especially if they pertain to areas that transcend our existing strengths. Please e-mail any comments or additions to Alexander Geppert at geppert@iue.it or to Jean Coffey at jeanc@csufresno.edu. Information about European exhibitions should be sent to Mr. Geppert. Information about North American fairs and fairs from all other areas of the world should be sent to Ms. Coffey.

To cite this work, please use the following:

Geppert, Alexander C.T., Jean Coffey and Tammy Lau: International Exhibitions, Expositions Universelles and World's Fairs, 1851-1951: A Bibliography, in: Wolkenkuckucksheim: Internationale Zeitschrift fur Theorie und Wissenschaft der Architektur (Special Issue, 2000). URL: /theoriederarchitektur/Wolke/eng/Bibliography/ExpoBiblioqraphy.htm.

 or

Geppert, Alexander C.T., Jean Coffey and Tammy Lau: International Exhibitions, Expositions Universelles and World's Fairs, 1851-1951: A Bibliography. URL: http://www.lib.csufresno.edu/SubjectResources/SpecialCollections/WorldFairs/Secondarybiblio.pdf.

We would like to express our gratitude to Michael Goerke (European University Institute, Florence) for computer-related advice, to the staff of the Systems Office at the California State University, Fresno library for all of their help and for making this list available on the Special Collections Library's web site, and, last but not least, to the staff and editors of Wolkenkuckucksheim for helping us in the realization of this enterprise, especially Heidrun Bastian.

Florence and Fresno, November 1, 2000

Alexander C.T. Geppert, Jean Coffey and Tammy Lau